With the aim of a Goddess
by DarkPhoenix2002
Summary: ABANDONED WORK! Artemis Diez was raised by her grandmother in the outskirts of Manhattan. Until the MRD attacks her small high school, the young mutant is oblivious to her powers. Now she's off to Xavier's school to learn to control her gift and make some friends on the way. And possible meet someone who is more then a friend. OC. AU.
1. Chapter 1

I am Artemis Rose Diaz and yes, I am a mutant. I was born to Jorge and Rose Diaz. My father was a a immigrant from the Dominican Republic who came as a teenager seeking education. My mother was a drug addict. They fell in love, my mom changed her ways, they moved in together, and lived happily ever after. That was, until I was born.

My mother had a very challenged birth. They named me Artemis, after the Greek goddess of the hunt and my father's favorite of the gods (he studied them in college). Soon, though, my mother died. My father fell into a deep pool of depression, and committed suicide when I was a week old. Only days after my mom's funeral. So here I was, an infant and an orphan. My very Hispanic Grandmother finds me and took me in. But that's not where my story begins.

Every story has a beginning, and mine is my first day of high school.

I roll around in bed. Pieces of my brown hair fall into my face as I fight my alarm to turn off. My head throbs, I figure It's from reading till 3:30 last night. I never thought anything different.

I get dressed and make my way to breakfast, where Abuela, gray hair, kind brown eyes, dark skin, and a collection of interesting frocks, is making toast.

"Are you ready for school, Mi querida?" she asks.

"Yes, Abuela," I say.

"You are always so eager to learn. I am so proud of you!" she embraces me before handing me my breakfast and allowing me to go out the door of our small apartment in the outskirts of Manhattan.

I just get to the bus stop in time. My best friend, Mia waves to me.

We grab hold of our seats in the back of the bus as the Driver, a middle-aged man with a thick neck, gray mustache, and very thick glasses, speeds onto the freeway.

But surviving the bus isn't my power. No, my powers don't come until after I already had Algebra 1, Pre-Chemistry, Literature, and Lunch. It's not until Gym I learn I am not like the rest.

"I hate Gym," Mia, red hair, dark eyes, pale skin, and a skill of knowing exactly what shoes to wear for every occasion, says. I hated gym too. But not for the same reason as her. Mia doesn't like to get sweaty. I don't like humiliating myself. I'm not athletically inclined.

We enter the girls locker room full of naked skinny minis with breasts the size of melons spilling out of their bras. If highschool wasn't intimidating enough, now we have freaking Covergirls to flash their overly large amount of cleavage and waxed legs around to attract boys into their beds. And yes, we're still freshmen.

Mia, who has no issue with her body, stays with the rest, but I slip to the other side of the lockers to change into the School's gym clothes, (a pair of maroon shorts and a white, school T-Shirt.) I catch myself in the mirror, dark brown hair, darker eyes, pimply skin, glasses, and a 5'3 body with too much meat. I try to suck in the pudge, but to no result. My stomach just won't lay flat.

Coach Sanders, has run a lap around the gym to warm up. By the end, I'm winded and have a stitch in my side. Then she assigns us to teams so that we can play basketball I'm put with six other Freshman who have succeeded in the social game with their expensive shoes and phones. One of which is a boy named Connor Christy, who was my friend up until last year when his dad won the lottery. He quickly went up the ranks and now hangs out with kids like Stephanie Thomson, and Angelica Starr.

Another thing I hate about gym class is that my aim is always way off. So of course I'm expecting to miss the basket when the ball gets to me.

But as I get ready to aim, something weird happens. My headache turns into a strange tingling that starts in my head and quickly works its way to my arms. At first I think I'm having some type of stroke. I throw the ball, and it doesn't even hit the backboard.

It goes straight into the basket.

I look down at my hands as the tingling stops. I'm somewhat aware of someone, maybe Coach Sanders, commenting on my throw. But my mind grows hazy.

The last thing I remember is hitting the waxed floor.

…

I wake up in the nurse's office. My headache had started again, and as I sat up, my head spun.

"How do you feel?" someone asks.

A woman with a deep red hair tied back in a knot, vibrant green eyes, a red shirt and black skirt stands next to the examination table. She wasn't the nurse who gave us "the talk" last year in 8th grade. She was new. Not as beaten down and in her late sixties like the last one.

"Okay, I guess," I mumble. My head still hurts, but I figure passing out was just because of the vigorous exercise. I still was very winded after the run.

"I'm Dr. Grey," she sits on the spinny stool by the table.

"Artemis," I say.

"I know." Of course she knew, she probably knows everything about me from my school records. My blood type, family history, even panty size if she examined me hard enough. "I called your grandmother."

Guilt bubbles up in my stomach. Abuela doesn't have enough money to pay for gas so she doesn't have a vehicle. If she was coming to pick me up, she'd have to take a taxi, and those aren't cheap.

My head spun again, and bring my fingertips up to massage my temples. "I'll be okay," I say.

"Artemis, listen to me," Dr. Grey says, "We don't have much time. The MRD is already tracking you down. But listen, What happened to you in the gym wasn't a freak incident. You are changing. Evolving if you will."

And the new school nurse is nuts. I raise my brow, "Evolving? Like Darwin and that crap?"

" I suppose yes, like Darwin. Artemis You are a mutant."

A mutant. "Like the Ninja Turtles?" I ask. I scan the room for the door. If I had to I could jump around her to get out.

"Funny, but no. You're special, and there is a school to help you control your powers."

"Powers?! You're saying I'm some type of Super hero?"

She swears under her breath, "sorry, I'm rushed. I suppose to get you out by 1:30 and it's 1:25, but yes. The headmaster of the school, Professor Xavier, sensed you last night and sent me to retrieve you."

I slide off the table and go behind her, she just watched me with a careful eye, "You can just tell this Professor what ever his name was, that I don't believe this bullshit and I'm going to Spanish class." I keep taking careful steps, soon I'm at the door.

With a loud crash, the ceiling caves in.

 **to be continued...?**

 **AN: what do you think? Is it worth continuing? This idea has been on my mind for awhile, and I'm looking forward to writing this, but I don't want to if no one's interested. Please let me know what you think. Anyway, I'm hoping to upload a chapter at least every other week, alternating with my other story, the dark Phoenix rises. (A little self promotion there. Lol) after I get use to my new schedule, I may upload more. But anyway, Hope you all like this story. Cheers!**


	2. Chapter 2

I'm pulled back just as ceiling tiles crash to the ground. Dust fills the room and the security alarm of the school goes off but is soon drowned out by the sound of a helicopter.

"What the?" I yell over the noise, my heart pounding in my throat right behind the lump that I can't swallow.

A ladder descends through the hole in the roof as the dust settles.

"How much do you trust me?" Dr. Grey asks urgently.

"Wha…" She grabs my wrist and pulls me out the dilapidated doorway.

We rush down the hall and out the door. I stumble over my feet, but she keeps me upwards.

When we get into the parking lot it's full of army green vans and men in some type of black uniforms with helmets.

"Halt Mutants!" One yells.

 _You have got to be kidding me._

"This way!" Dr. Grey pulls me to the side of the school. A single car is parked in the alley. She rips the driver's side door opens and I don't even hesitate to get in the other side. If I have to choose between the crazy school nurse or a bunch of angry army men. I think the choice is obvious.

She swerves into the parking lot and speeds onto the main road. I attempt to catch my breath as she switches on the radio. Apparently, when you're making an escape from someone the first thing you do is put on some good music.

"Who were they?" I demand.

"The MRD. and fasten your seatbelt."

"Okay. Who is the MRD?"

"Mutant Registration Department. Don't you watch the news?"

"Abuela doesn't let me," I say defensively.

"Smart." She muses as she finally settles the radio on a static-filled 98.9 radio station. "Anyone there?" She asks.

"Who are you…"

The static disappears and a man's voice comes over, "Jean, Is everything OK?"

"The MRD came, I've got Artemis. Is it clear to come back?"

"The radar isn't showing anything. Was she as difficult to get as the Professor assumed?" The man says.

"I'm right here!" I snap.

"Anyway," Dr. Grey says, "we'll be there in approximately 5 minutes."

"Where are you taking me?" I ask.

"Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. it's what I told you about. It's a place for people like us."

But what are "us". Did she have me wrong? I couldn't be some type of superhuman freak. I'm just a normal kid!

The denial was quickly thrown out of my mind when we hit 80 mph on a curvy back road.

"¿Estas loco?" I practically scream as my head jerks back into the headrest.

A very sharp turn onto a gravel-covered driveway later, Dr. Grey laughs softly, "Sorry about that, Artemis, I had to make sure the MRD wasn't tracking us."

What appears to be a castle comes into view. With stone walls and large windows. A magnetic courtyard full of kids playing basketball of lounging in the sun. Spindly trees held up by string line the driveway that wraps around either side of a fountain. All this is viable through an iron gate that opens with a touch of a button on the car console.

"Welcome to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters," Dr. Grey says.

"This is a school?" I gasp, taking in the view. Even though the mansion itself was very sixteenth century, it was clear that the rest was very modern. From the basketball court to the obviously high-priced security system. This place was fit for a king. Or in this case, a bunch of mutant kids.

"Are we sure I'm a mutant?" I ask, watching two kids, in particular, one was levitating at least six feet in the air, and the other had a snake-like tongue that was wiggling around, obviously trying to find his friend. I could see why the MRD seemed to exist. Because mutants scared them. Maybe some even used their powers for bad, I wouldn't doubt it. But these kids didn't scare me, they made me curious.

More importantly, I wanted to live here. To move here and never look back to the rundown, old apartment I had lived in for years. In a small piece of my heart, I couldn't stand leaving Abuela. Would she still love me if I was a mutant? If I left her and her collection of frocks behind in Manhattan? Would she have to pay my tuition? I wasn't too bad in public school, so maybe I would receive a scholarship. I didn't know. But I wanted to find out because all of the sudden I was okay with being different.

"Definitely," Dr. Grey smiles, "Why don't you come in and meet the Professor. I'm sure he's been anxiously waiting for your arrival."

To Be Continued...

 **Author's notes: so, what do you all think? I think this fic may just be a fluff thing. I would love feedback on that and of course nothing is written in stone, so if you have any ideas or suggestions for the story or anyone to pair Atremis with, I am always up for a challange. don't shy away from comments. as always I apreciate them and they make my day!**


	3. Chapter 3

I step out of the car and into the warm sun. Dr. Grey is already putting in a code on a small keypad by the door when I stumbled up the stone steps.

With a small beep, the glass door swings open. I'm led into a high-ceilinged room with a grand staircase in the center and two halls on either side. Plush couches and chairs are situated around tables like a study area. This room was lit by a chandelier in the middle and a few warm-glowing lamps on the tables. The hallway that Dr. Grey leads me into is lit by bright LEDs, and it takes me a moment to adjust.

The hall is lined with shelves of books and different, expensive looking, figurines, along with pedestals with marble busts of historical figures and decorative vases.

Dr. Grey knocks on the first door, and a kind voice comes from within, "enter, Jean."

The door opens, revealing another warmly lit room with walls lined with bookshelves of journals and manilla folders. A mahogany desk is situated in the middle, and behind it is a bald man in a sweater vest and tie. He sits in a wheelchair with his hands folded on the desktop, reading through a file.

"Welcome back," he tells Dr. Grey with a slight English accent, "Evan Daniels is waiting down in the infirmary. It's nothing life-threatening, just perhaps a sprained ankle. He hasn't been there long."

She nods and retreats back to the door.

"Oh, and do send Nathaniel here. I believe it is his turn to give the tour." He calls after her.

"Yes, Professor." She gently shuts the door behind her.

He closes his file and turns his attention to me, smiling he says, "hello. Have a seat," he motions to a chair in front of the desk. "I am Professor Xavier. Would you like some tea?"

"Oh, uh no thanks," I say, wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans as I sit.

"Very well," he takes a sip out of his own teacup and says, "now, Artemis, you're wondering why you're here?"

"Yeah."

"You are special." He says, looking at me with twinkling, dark blue eyes. "You have a power that I have not seen in quite some time." He pauses like he's waiting for me to say something.

"Dr. Grey said I had powers," I say, filling in the gap.

"Yes." He smile, "like your namesake, the Greek goddess of the hunt, you have extraordinary aim. As I am sure you have already discovered."

For some reason, I feel myself blush. I look down at my lap and shake my head, "I didn't. Although now the day makes sense." I think about passing out. It was right after my arm tingled and I made a perfect basket, which has happened a total of zero times. Then I was sent to the nurse's office and the next thing I knew I was being hunted down by the MRD. They all piece together a puzzle I was trying to solve. I can't believe I had all the elements in front of me and I never realized.

"Now, let me ask you, have you had any headaches or anything out of the usual. High levels of an anxiety or stress, perhaps?"

"I was diagnosed with anxiety a few years ago," I say, twisting brown curl around my finger, "And I did wake up with a headache this morning. But I just thought it was from reading so late last night."

"Headaches are common for newly formed mutants, " he says, writing something in a new file.

"My Abuela, what about her? Does she know about this?" I ask.

"Yes. I have contacted her. I've arranged to have a car to pick her and your belongings up. You can, of course, call her to finalize the things you would like her to bring "

"I would like that," I say, looking at the phone on his desk.

"Okay, I'll leave you to it then," he says, he moves out from his desk. "We can't legally file anything without a guardian's consent anyway."

He leaves the office and I take the phone from the receiver. My hand shakes slightly as I dial the number. What will she say? Will she be happy? Or angry?

The phone rings twice before she answers.

"Hello?" He kind voice comes over the speaker, an old, _boleros_ in the background.

"Abuela," I say.

"Artemis!" She exclaims, " _¿Como Estas?_ "

"I'm doing … well," I decided after a pause. "Had Professor Xavier contacted you?"

" _Sí._ Are you alright with staying there?" He voice almosts cracks and a wave of guilt floods over me.

"Yes. If that's okay with you." I quickly add.

"Of course I am okay with it, _Querido,_ " she chuckles, "you need to be with your people."

"You don't care that I'm a…" I trail off, not wanting to use the word mutant for no known reason.

"I love you. That won't stop now that you are a _superhéroe_."

I smile at the thought, I have always pictured a superhero as someone with a cape and a primary-colored suit and mask. That wasn't me.

"Abuela," I sigh, "I'm not a superhero. I'm just a girl with some type of power."

"Still. What would you like me to bring? I already have your pajamas out of the washing machine. Your butterfly nightgown and plaid pants are already packed. I figured you would also want your rainbow sweater and your jeans with the gems? you always wear those items."

"Yes," I say.

We spent the next several minutes listing things she will need to pack. I remind her twice to pack my bunny plushie, Bun, and my alarm clock that I have programmed to play the Jurassic Park theme.

"Alright, _Querido_ , I have everything. I will be there as soon as possible. _Adios."_

"Bye." I set the phone down on the receiver when Professor Xavier comes back in. I try to smile as anxiety starts to ebb away at my insides. The amazement of the architecture was gone. This was really happening. I was a mutant.

A few minutes pass, then Professor Xavier says, "I found this school a few decades back to help mutants learn to control their powers along with being a safe haven for those being chased by the government. I, being a telepath, find mutants, especially children, and try to enroll them. I sent Dr. Grey out to get you after realizing that the MRD has a usually large interest in you."

"But why?" I ask, not hiding my surprise.

"Because you are special. With the right training, you could be a very excellent, shooter. The MRD wants you on their side." He tents his hands on the desk and smiles at me, "now that you are here, they won't get you."

The MRD, who I was under the impression wanted a mutant holocaust, would want me on their side? This is the insane.

"They have specially trained or as we like to call them, brainwashed mutants who fight with them." He explains like he was reading my mind. He said he was a telepath though, so he might have been.

Am I really believing all of this? The answer was, I didn't know. I am sitting in a room with a guy who claims to be a mindreader and I am strangely comfortable with it. Honestly, I am really too comfortable. I feel like I can tell him anything. How many others had sat in this same seat, thinking _why the hell do I feel like I want to pour out my heart to this guy?_

"Now, Artemis, we can begin the registration if you'd like. of course your Grandmother will have to sign the paperwork."

I stare blankly at the carpet and answer the questions he throws at me. My full name: Artemis Rose Diez. My birthday: January 16th, 2002. My grade: Ninth. My family's nationality: Hispanic American. on and on these questions come, until finally there is a knock on the door and a kid comes in, followed by a flustered looking Abuela. She's in a pink, plaid frock, with her gray hair pulled back into a loose knot.

I quickly stand and she embraces me, planting a kiss on my forehead.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Diez," Professor Xavier extends his hand across the desk as Abuela sits in the chair. I stand beside her.

The rest of the time is spent finalizing paperwork and making copies of my birth certificate and vaccine records.

In the rush of the moment, I had completely overlooked the kid who came in with Abuela. But as they discuss my allergies, I turn around. He was leaning on the wall, looking down at his dirty fingernails. He was gangly, with a mop of brown hair and deep-set hazel eyes, averted from everyone else in the room. He wears a wrinkled blue shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. it was obvious he was trying too hard to look like he didn't care. Somehow I knew he was listening in on everything being said in the room. Not to mention, even with the wrinkled clothing and messy hair, he was handsome.

"If you'd like, Nate can give you the tour while we finish up all this," Professor Xavier says, noticing my interest in the other boy.

At the sound of his name, the boy looks up, "sure," He says in a voice that was obviously in the middle of puberty. He stands up straight and Abuela nods me towards the door.

I follow Nate out of the room and to the hall, where my luggage sits against the wall.

"Do you want to go up and then work our way down, or start outside and work our way up?" He asks, hiding his hands in his pocket.

"whatever you want to do," I say, looking down at my suitcase. I was worried that if I made eye contact with him I would blush.

"I'm Nathaniel, by the way," he says with a shy smile as we start down the hall to what I guess is the lobby. "Nathaniel Summers."

I couldn't help but smile. I think I had a crush on Nathaniel Summers.

To Be Continued...

 **Author's Notes: Well, Chapter three was a bit of a challenge for me. I didn't want to just have a play by play of what she did to be enrolled, but I didn't know how else to do it. SO, I hope it was enjoyable. My unoffical beta reader enjoyed it, so I really hope you all do too. Anyway, remember to f and f as well as review.**

 **Also, the next chapter is going to have characters from my other OC story, "I am the Whisperer." So if you haven't read it, then it will still make sense, but I'd still reccomend reading it just because it's a personal favorite of mine. it's about a young mutant names Laikyn who can talk to animals and ends up being captured by Azazel and brought to the underworld. So if you do read it, then that would be awesome! You will probably like it if you like this one. But anyway, see you later :)**


	4. Chapter 4

I fall backwards onto the feather-top mattress. I rub the silken bedspread between my fingers and I try to convince myself that this was real life.

Nathaniel had given me a complete tour of the mansion, from the stables to the training room that they call the "Danger Room" (the name sounds very intimidating). When we got back to the office, Abuela was finishing the paperwork. Anxiety hit me like a train, and soon I'm crying into her shoulder, With no regards to Professor Xavier being right there, or Nathaniel in the hall, who could most definitely hear my dying-animal-like sobs. She wished me luck, reminded me of her love, and after a couple hundred hugs, she leaves the school, advising me not to watch the car drive away.

I was thankful that Nathaniel ignores my tear-stained cheeks and puffy eyes after the Professor calls him back in. Of course, afterwards I am worried that it impacted him in some ways. How long had it been since he'd seen his parents? Or did he even have parents? If the world hates mutants, then what happens to mutant kids? Are their parents like Abuela, or do they disown them? How many kids are just dropped at this school and forgotten?

I am assigned a room, and Nathaniel assisted me with my luggage.

"So, what is your power?" he asked as he pushes the up-arrow button the the elevator.

"Uh, I guess I have extraordinary aim or something like that." I was embarrassed that I can't explain it better.

"I'm a jedi," He said with a small smile.

"Like, you have the Force?" I ask. Okay, to be honest someone could say that unicorns exist and I'd believe, them. It's just been one of those days.

"Actually, I have telekinesis. But telling people I'm a jedi sounds way better." He smiled at his joke. "Anyway, I can move stuff with my mind."

He showed me my bedroom (a large room with an adjoined bathroom across from a plush bed. Beside the door is bookshelf and dresser, and across from that, is a large, bay window with a bench underneath covered in extra pillows and is in a beige and white color scheme). He leaves me to unpack, telling me that Dinner was at 5, and that's where I am now.

I look over at my belongings, sitting in the suitcase by the door, but I couldn't persuade myself to unpack it. I couldn't believe that I actually wanted to be here just an hour ago. Now that I am alone, I am regretting all my choices that I made today. It had been a little over an hour since I had cried, and I couldn't seem to get anymore tears out, even if I completely felt like drowning in them.

I had been selfish. What will happen to Abuela? She isn't exaclty in as well of health as she tells everyone. Would she be okay without me? What would happen about the school? Surely they know that I am a mutant now. Will I be hunted here? And what about my friend Mia? she will be fine without me, that's certain, but will she be interrogated for being my friend? will Abuela? Or will The MRD just forget about me and move onto the next innocent mutant they track down? Why do I get the feeling they aren't the forgive and forget type of people?

I hadn't beem planning to go to dinner, but an unknown force pulls me out of my room after hearing the student's chatter in the hall. I quietly follow the group into the cafeteria.

People depart from the group. either going to the hotbar at the front or joining friends at tables. I keep my eyes averted until.

"Hey Artemis!" I look up to see Nathaniel wave to me. He's balancing a tray of food on one hand and a cup of orange soda in the other. "Our table is over there," He nods with his head over to a table a few yards away, "if you want to join us you totally can."

"Okay," I squeak.

Someone shouts something inaudible and Nathaniel laughs. Then he makes the rest of the trip to his table, splashing orange soda onto the concrete floor as he does so.

I amble up to the hot bar, feeling a little relieved that at least I have someone to sit with. I duck my head as the students ahead of me (the first with dark blue hair, and cat-like eyes and the second with greenish skin and a wild tangle of blond hair) argueing if pizza or nachos are better. I don't even look up when the one asks my opinion. I just nod even though their question wasn't a yes or no answer.

I walk back into the maze of tables with plastic chairs. Nathaniel waves again and I sit in the seat across from him and in between two other kids. One is a girl with brown hair a few shades lighter than mine, brown eyes not quite hidden under thin glasses, and a soft, almost babish expression. The second is a dark-skinned boy, with dyed-blonde dreadlocks tied back out of his face, and a pointed face. He smirks as we make eye contact.

"Hey, Artemis," Nathaniel says, "this is Tyrone," he nods to dreadlocks. "And my girlfriend, Laikyn."

My heart sinks at the word _girlfriend_.

"Hi," Laikyn says with a soft smile. I try not to resent her instantly. She seems nice. But so does Nathaniel.

I adjust my own glasses on my face and start on my nachos.

"Quiet, aren't you?" Tyrone says with another smirk.

"I guess."

"It's fine, I was too when I started," Laikyn says with a pointed look at Tyrone. "Oh look, there's Illyanna, she's back from Russia!" she gets up from the table and runs across the room to greet another girl.

Nathaniel whistles quietly, "I'm surprised she even came back," he muses.

Tyrone guffaws, "right, like Little Miss Teleporter was going to stay with her family."

"Little Miss Teleporter?" I repeat.

"She talks!" Tyrone exclaims, raising his hands over his head like anouncing a touchdown in football.

"Illyanna can teleport into different dimensions and stuff," Nathaniel explains. _Of course she does._

"What about Laikyn?" I ask.

"Oh, she can talk to animals."

"Intangibility," Tyrone stabs a thumb to his chest.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means I can pick up skills used against me in fights." He explains.

"He can also teleport," Nathaniel says, "but after getting trapped in the wall for a couple of minutes last month, well, let's just say it's not his favorite thing to do anymore."

Tyrone's complexion glows red. "Thanks, Nate." he says dryly.

So, Telekinesis, two teleporters, a girl who can talk to animals, and someone who can steal skills from people. I was feeling pretty inferior.

"What about you?" Tyrone raises his thin eyebrows, "what are your powers?"

"I have extraordinary aim." I say, awkwardly.

"Oh… okay," Tyrone didn't seem impressed. And to be honest, if I could teleport, I wouldn't be either.

to be continued 

**AN: hey! so,obviously this is a super quick chapter introducing characters. I just really wanted to update this quickly. Anyhoo, I hope you enjoyed. please f &f if you like it as well as review if their are any critism, suggestions, or anything else that you'd like to share. Cheers! **


	5. Chapter 5

My first day of school is well... a disaster.

I am fine with all my morning classes. I impressed Dr. McCoy, (a blue, fur-covered beast wearing a suit) the Literature teacher, with my knowledge of Victor Hugo, and Professor Xavier on the topic of the French Revolution. Biology with Dr. Grey doesn't go so well. Of course, Laikyn offers to help. Ms. Munroe gives me Math resources but blames the fact that I joined the class late on my failure in algebra. I was thankful for the teacher's help (Laikyn's, not too much).

Of course, I should have known there would be bullies at this school as well.

I'm at the food bar with Nathaniel and Ilyanna (a dark-haired, light complexion girl with overly-large blue eyes and a Russian Accent) When Lance comes up behind me. I don't think much about it.

"Hello, Mutees!" He says.

He's muscular, with ruffled, brown hair and scars that look like bite marks covering his face. He has on a worn, Walking Dead T-shirt and a pair of cargo pants.

"Honestly, Lance," Illyanna says, annoyed, "You are a mutant too, when are you going to stop calling us that?"

Lance spits on the floor, "I just came to meet the new Mutee! How do you like this hell-hole? Don't worry, the MRD will get you soon enough." He laughs at himself.

I don't respond. I remember Abuela telling me that I'd you act like it doesn't bother you, the bullies will drop it. I continue the scoop tater tots on my plate and move onto the drinks. Nathaniel glances at me, and I shake my head just slightly. It seems like Lance just wants to cause trouble.

"What? Don't you like me?" Lance comes up and snatches the cup of juice from my hand.

"I'd prefer Aaron Burr," I say, dryly.

"Artemis," Illyanna warns.

Lance's nostrils flare. "I don't know who that is! I don't like not knowing things!"

"Maybe you should have thought of that before becoming a dumbass." Nathaniel mumbles. Of course, Lance doesn't hear him, because he is too busy dumping apple juice over my head.

The sticky liquid drips down my back, soaking my hair and shoulders. Despite the cold, my face burns and heat pounds behind my eyes.

I push past Lance, possibly knocking him into the chicken strips, and storm from the cafeteria before the tears could come.

* * *

I end up taking the wrong turn and show up in the library. Still juice-covered, I hide in the historical fiction section, take _Les Miserables_ off the shelf, and sit with my back to the shelf and the book in my lap. At least if I cry now I have a good reason.

I don't even get to page three before Nathaniel, Illyanna, and Tyrone come in.

"Artemis?" Nathaniel calls. Tyrone spots me and soon they are gathering around in the narrow aisle.

"Are you OK?" Illyanna asks, sitting beside me and hugging my soggy shoulders.

"How did you find me?" I ask.

"We followed the juice trail," Tyrone says.

Nathaniel kneels beside me and takes a towel from his bookbag, "here," he says, awkwardly dabbing my hair.

"Where's Laikyn?" I ask. It comes out more harshly then what I meant.

"She works with my mom in the labs," he shrugs, "isn't Russell Crowe in that?" He points to the book in my lap.

"This is a book."

"Well yeah, a really big book, but I'm talking about the movie that's based on it."

"Uh, maybe.."

"Anyway," Illyanna says, "are you sure you're okay?"

"I can take a school bully." I say "it was just a little juice."

"You pushed him into the food bar. He broke the glass awning thing." Tyrone tells me in awe. "There was a bunch of shards in the broccoli. And a lot a blood too, They took him to the infirmary for stitches.

I begin to panic. I know I'm screwed, even though he started it. Would I be expelled on my first day?

"Don't worry," Nathaniel says, "Professor X knows it wasn't your fault. We made sure of it."

"You do realize you ticked the guy off by comparing him a historical villain, Right?" Illyanna asks.

"He only wanted to keep his daughter from being an orphan," I explain.

"Uh, what?"

"I'm sorry, that's how I cope. I correct people on their knowledge of characters." I shake my head and squeeze my shirt in the towel.

"Coping? What are you coping with?" Tyrone asks.

Ah, where to begin, the fact that I've just moved to a new school is something big, Another is the fact that I'm covered in juice. That's not even mentioning that I have the MRD on my tail and that I had to leave Abuela. I guess you could say I have a lot on my plate at the moment.

"Anyway, do you think you can come to Phys-Ed?" Nathaniel asks, "it's in 45 minutes.

" Yeah, probably," I decide. I stand up and put the book back where I found it. "I'm just going to go shower before."

* * *

A shower and a fresh clean of clothes later I'm walking down the stairs and leaving the mansion. A lot of the students were already lined up on the lawn, along with red kickballs. And I realize one of my worst fears is coming true. Dodgeball.

Okay, so my school doesn't play dodgeball, so I've never exactly played it before. However, I've watched loads of movies where a dodgeball game goes terribly bad.

"Ah, Artemis," Mr. Summers says, "you'll be on the left side."

I take my place beside a lengthy kid with overly-large pupils. Nathaniel and Illyanna both give me thumbs up from the opposite team and I search my line of teammates to see Tyrone, who is more involved in having a very enthusiastic conversation with a white-haired girl with electric blue eyes.

"Okay, go!" Mr. Summers blows his whistle and all chaos begins.

Balls fly over my head as I weave in and out of the others. If I could stay being the rest, then maybe they'd forget about me. I have just decided to do this when I collide with someone and land on my butt on the muddy ground.

"Woah, you alright?" Tyrone asks. Heat drains to my cheeks as I stand and try to brush the dirt off.

"I'm fine."

He kicks a ball out of the way and kicks someone off the other side. "Those two are Lance's cronies,' he points to two bulky boys with more muscles then I felt humanly possible. "Ten bucks that you can get them out."

"But they're on our team," I say, jumping out of the way of another ball.

"So? Mr. Summers won't notice. He's too busy watching his son." It was true, he definitely seemed absorbed in Nathaniel's movements, the way he stumbles to kick balls out of the way, and he seems disappointed when he misses his target.

So, when the next ball rolls over to me on the uneven terrain, I pick it up and throws it at one of the cronies. It wasn't for the money that Tyrone offered up, but for my own revenge. The ball hits him right in the face. Then the whistle is blown and I know I'm in trouble.

Mr. Summers walks through the crowd of now still students. "Artemis, it's against the rules to hit another teammate."

"I'm sorry," I mutter. All eyes are on me know. Even the guy that I hit, who has blood spewing from his nose. I instantly felt terrible.

"You're on the bench for the rest of the game," he says, which I didn't understand since there was no bench.

"Dad," Nathaniel interrupts, "It was an accent, she probably didn't even know he was on her team. It got pretty crazy there."

"Nate, don't forget you're still grounded, do you want to get into more trouble? Maya, please take Sam to the infirmary. Dr. Grey should be there."

A girl leads the guy into the mansion and I follow for a short distance, stopping at the steps and settling down.

Tyrone gives me a sad look, but I avert my eyes. He's the reason I got into trouble.

In all reality, I shouldn't have listened to him in the first place, but he shouldn't try to plant these ideas in my head. At least Nathaniel tried to help. Tyrone just stood there like an oaf. A stupid oaf who tricked me into doing something I now regret.

Instead of watching the rest of the game, I busy myself with counting the cracks on the pavement. One. I didn't think the first day would be so horrible. Two. Would they tell Abuela what I did? She would be so disappointed with me. Three. Four. After this, I only have to survive one short Geography class and I can hide in my bedroom for the rest of the day. Five. That's trusting I last the rest of the day. Six. Technically I sent two kids to the infirmary today. I saw it a lot in public school, they label me as a "troubled child" and send me home. Seven. Professor X said I was safe here, but that doesn't guarantee the other student's safety. Eight. If I am considered dangerous, would they just ship me off to the MRD?

"Artemis?" I jump at my name.

Laikyn is standing behind me. Her puff of brown hair is pulled back and shirt sleeves are rolled up. "What are you doing over here?"

"Mr. Summers kicked me from the game when I broke a kid's nose. Why are you here?"

I was just excused from the labs because Dr. Grey had to examine a student. Who's nose did you break?"

"One of Lance's cronies."

"Congratulations!"

So far Laikyn struck me as a goodie-two-shoes. So the fact that she congratulates me is confusing.

"I set a flock of geese on Lance once," She says, sitting next to me, "he's really just a terrible person."

I consider this, "shouldn't you be going to class?"

"I'm not athletically inclined."

"Me neither," I laugh.

"There, we have something in common."

That's when I realize something. Laikyn wasn't out to get me. She didn't even know I liked her boyfriend. She just got to him before I could, and I shouldn't take it out on her. She seems to sincerely want to be my friend, and that's something I shouldn't be angry about.

"So you work with Dr. Grey, eh? Could you put in a word to her to take it easy on me in Biology?"

She giggles, "I'll see what I can do."

To Be Continued...

 **Author's Notes: I am so so so sorry that I have not posted in forever. I had such a hard time writing this chapter and had to overcome writer's block like three times. But anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it, and I PROMISE that I will post more regularly. Since this is mostly a fluff story, it feels like I have less inspiration then my other stories. Remember to F &F and review. I really don't know where I am going from here, I'm thinking of maybe having a school dance or a few chapters that are a little "not fluffy" but nothing is written in stone. if you have any ideas or suggestions, I totally appreciate it. I write this story for my lovely readers, so I always take your ideas to consideration. **


	6. Chapter 6

The Professor has me start training with a guy named Havok the next day.

When I tell them at breakfast that morning, Nathaniel informs me that Havok's his uncle.

"Are you related to everyone here?" I ask.

"Only the Summers'," He shrugs.

"He basically grew up here," Illyanna says, "He was here when I came, and that was six years ago."

"Hold on, you came when you were nine?" I ask.

She nods, "My brother, Pyotr, brought me here. He's also a mutant."

"Does he teleport too?"

"No, his skin turns to metal."

Weirdly, that doesn't freak me out. Man has my life changed in the past few days.

I meet Havok in what they call the "Danger Room". We walked passed it when Nathaniel gave me the tour a few days ago, but he said that he didn't have access to get inside. When I get down to it, the door is wide open. A man, who I'm assuming is Havok, stands in the middle of a large, round room with metal paneled walls, holding up his phone towards the sky. A clipboard lays at his feet.

His eyes are deep-set and sapphire blue, and blond hair is tied back in a ponytail. I remember seeing up at the staff table in the cafeteria, but he hasn't taught any of my classes. He wears a blue and white plaid flannel overtop a t-shirt with a graphic of a shark and a pair of blue jeans.

I stand in the doorway for a long time before he notices me. "Oh, hey." he says, putting his phone to his side, "Artemis I'm assuming?"

"Yeah," I say, "You're Havok?"

"The one and only," He smirks. "So, the Professor told me you have good aim?"

I nod and he continues, "great. So I've set up some targets," He points to a table of dart boards and clay pigeons. "I want you to shoot at them," He goes over to the wall and puts a code into a keypad. With a beep, a panel opens and a shelf full of weapons slides outs. He selects a pistol from the rack. "Is this good?" he asks.

Abuela is against guns, and I grew up with the understanding that they were bad too. I hesitate, "I don't know how to use one," I say. I go over beside him. There were other things besides the guns on the rack. Swords, Katanas, than a handful of bows and sheaths of arrows tucked to one side.

When I was younger, my Aunt Victoria paid my way to a week-long summer camp. They had a time where the campers were allowed to practice shooting bows at a bullseye. I hadn't done so poorly.

"What about these?" I ask, taking a silver one from its bounds and weighing it in my hand.

"Are you sure? Bows are harder to work with," Havok says.

"I have a basic idea of how to use one," I say, "But I have no idea what I'm doing with that thing," I gesture towards the gun.

"You seem sure," He takes the sheath down and hands it over. I sling it over my shoulder.

"Now if only my hair was in a braid," I joke.

"Alright," he says, "you see that line on the floor," He points at a slot in between two panels. I stand by it. "Not that one, that one." I step over to the next one ahead.

He picks up his clipboard and writes something down. "Okay, so, let's aim for the center of the bullseye," He says, pointing towards the table of targets.

I stand sideways with my feet planted firmly on the ground. I take an arrow from the bunch and string it into the bow. I pull back, aim, and let go. It flies… like three feet before clattering to the ground.

"Try again," He encourages.

I string another arrow in. It soars farther than its predecessor, but not far enough that it even hit the table.

"Maybe try stepping closer," Havok suggests, scribbling on his clipboard.

I take one step closer to the target. I wasn't going to look like an idiot who can't shoot an arrow from a long distance.

Havok chuckles.

I aim another arrow. It flies through the air and hits the target right in the middle.

He applauds, cradling the clipboard in the croak of his elbow. "Bravo! I guess that two inches really made a difference."

My cheeks grew pink.

I practice shooting arrows for another twenty minutes. I pin clay pigeons between the eyes, impale jelly dummies right in the heart, and of course, a gain a perfect score on the bullseye.

"Great!" Havok says after the arrow implants itself in the center circle for the around the eleventh time. "Let's move onto the moving targets." He tramps across the gym floor and puts in a command on a glowing screen. A panel slides out from the ceiling and another rack of clay pigeons follows. He puts in another command and the rack begins to spin.

"Try to hit one," He tells me.

I look at him like he just swore in church. Not only was the rack at least 10 feet up, it was moving at like fifty miles an hour. Even if my mutation is excellent aim, that's way too fast.

"Watch," He nods to the rack and points his fist at it. His knuckles glow and a blue-white ray shoots at the pigeon. A crack echoes off the metal walls and he stops the targets from moving with another tap of the screen. I gap at him. "That was insane," I say. The beige pigeon has a scorching, black mark on its side.

"Energy blasts," he says, waving his hand.

"Still, your precision is amazing!" I exclaim, not being able to take my eyes off the target.

He shrugs and starts the rack to spin again. "Try shooting," He says.

I string another arrow and point it blindly towards the whirling targets. I think I hit one at first until it flies out seconds later and lands, bent, on the floor.

"Practice makes perfect!" Havok sings.

I shoot and shoot, but with no success. The targets are just too fast. After a quiver's worth of arrows is shot, I'm frustrated.

"You have to shoot the target before they expect you," He says, calmly, "try to shoot it towards a side, not the center."

"Can't you slow the damn thing down?" I snap.

"No, Artemis. The enemy won't slow down for you. You have to learn to adjust to their speed, not your own." For being a twenty-something-year-old in a shark t-shirt he can spit out some wise words sometimes.

On my way back up to the main floor, I hear the rumble of thunder overhead. When I get to my bedroom, I settle down with _The Forgetting_ , an interesting Young adult novel I found in the library, and wait for dinner.

 **To Be Continued...**

 **AN: Just a super quick chapter demonstrating her powers. I have a few ideas of how I want to go with this, but any other ideas would be awesome! Don't hesitate to suggest scenes. Pretty please don't forget to F &F and of course review! I'm having a really fun time writing this so I hope you all like it. **

**Ps. I totally accedenly published the wrong chapter last time... It wasn't even to this story. Oops sorry!**


	7. Chapter 7

_Wack! Wack!_

It was almost a month later when the pounding on my bedroom door sends me into a fury of rapid heartbeat and tingly limbs. "Yeah?" I call. When no one answers, I think maybe it was dream induced. My heart slows down and I'm just about back to sleep when.

 _Wack!_

" _¡mierda!_ "I say below my breath, now laying completely still. If it's the MRD at my door, I'm done for.

 _Wack! Wack! Wack!_

But why would to MRD be knocking? If they had the intention of taking me, they wouldn't be knocking. They'd be busting the door down and shooting lasers everywhere or something. So when there is another pound on the door, I slip from bed and pad across the carpet. "Yes?" I call again.

I'm answered by more knocking.

I turn the doorknob and… I'm almost beheaded by a flying piece of wood.

"What the hell!" I scream, ducking just in time for the debris to soar over my head and slam against the wall, splintering into thousands of tiny pieces.

The entire hallway is filled with the same thing. Pieces of wood and plaster airborne. Spinning haphazardly throughout the corridor. Now that the door's open, I can hear panicked voices, yelling back to each other with commands. I come to one conclusion. It's a tornado.

In my confusion, I forget everything I was taught in school on tornado safety and find myself running out into the hall, bent down and covering my head with my arms. I stumble several times until I finally fall flat on my face.

I'm going to die. Debris flies overhead, crashing into each other and the other ancient artifacts that fill the hall. I try to get up, but don't want to risk getting my head taken off by the chaos. I end up army crawling away, my face pressed against the dusty carpet.

"Artemis!" I feel someone grabbing me and pulling me to my feet. Then something pulls at the pit of my stomach, my feet leave the ground, and everything goes black. My feet hit the ground again and my knees buckle below me. Did I just die?

I'm in someone's bedroom. It smells strongly of tween boy body spray and dirty laundry. I heave, but surprisingly don't vomit. Not because of the scent, but because of vertigo that overswept me.

"Wha…." I cannot get any words out.

"Sorry," Tyrone says, kneeling next to me, "I teleported us out. It may have some, uh, lasting effects on you."

"What was that?" I ask.

"Nathaniel lost control of his powers," He explains, standing up and offering me his hand. I hesitate, but finally, grab his clammy hand with mine and stand up. My legs wobble underneath me and I fall into him. He grabs me and leads me to his messy bed.

My arms burn from splinters and scratches, and specks of blood raise from under the surface, clotting the cuts.

"That… That was madness!" How could something so chaotic come from Nathaniel? That calm, collected kid?

"That was telekinesis," Tyrone sits down beside me and flops backward, covering his face with his arm, "Poor kid."

I cross my legs, my head starting to slow its spinning. Out in the hall, the debris was still crashing into everything, which then resulted in new debris. This whole floor would be trashed before it stopped.

A puff of smoke fills the room. Coughing on it, I scoot back in the bed, like the five inches would keep me from any demon that would attack. But Illyana is the only one who emerges, Laikyn clinging to her.

"Artemis!" Illyana exclaims! "We went to your room to get you since you're the closest one to Nathaniel. You weren't there."

Laikyn nods, "we were worried he disintegrated you," she says. Illyana wrinkles her nose.

"Wait, what?"

Tyrone sits up and runs a hand through his dreads, "Nathaniel's telekinesis is off the charts. He takes after his mom. The Professor supposedly put some type of mind-blockers in his head to keep his evil side from escaping, but it uh, didn't work apparently."

Laikyn shivers. She's as pale as a ghost, and her wide eyes are tear-shining. "Nathaniel isn't evil." She corrects. "Awhile ago, Dr. Grey lost control too. It was bad. Really bad. Worse than this. It took her months to recover, apparently. But she isn't evil. And neither is Nathaniel."

"Nate doesn't even know what happening, probably," Illyana tells us, perching herself on the stand by the bed. "He told me once that he will lose control when he's asleep because he isn't focusing on his powers. Usually, it's just little bursts of power though, maybe enough to shake his room or pull books from the shelf. Never anything like this."

Another knock on the door. It had happened so many times that it didn't even phase me until a voice follows. It's Ms. Munroe's. "You four can come out now." She says, "Dr. Grey would like to speak with you."

We all exchange looks. Her son's powers just went ballistic and she wants to talk to us?

So we all file out of Tyrone's room, where Ms. Munroe stands. Like I assumed, the hallway is completely trashed. Holes are punched in the wall, statues lay headless or without a pillar, bookshelves are thrown without regards to the items inside. The whole area is just one big dust cloud. I can tell now why I thought it was a tornado.

"Is Nathaniel okay?" Laikyn asks, shakily.

"Professor Xavier and Dr. Grey were able to establish the barriers that keep his powers in check. He's in the infirmary under close monitoring now." She says, softly as she leads us through the maze of debris. Some teachers were helping students relocate for the night, and others are already cleaning up and repairing the damage.

Ms. Munroe takes us down, via crowded elevator, to the sub-basement. The sound of hushed voices is coming from an open door.

We are lead into a hospital wing. Dr. Grey and Mr. Summers are discussing something. Behind them, Nathaniel is laying on a metal exam table. Electroid tabs are stuck over his temple and forehead, the monitors above him are going ballistic, the sharp zigzag lines are skinny and go completely to the top and bottom of the screen. The EKG's beeps angrily like it's about to explode. The entire situation was dire, but this seemed straight out of a sci-fi movie.

"Ah, Ororo. Thank you!" Dr. Grey exclaims with an expectant look towards Mr. Summers. "Come out into the hall. Ororo can you keep an eye on Nate?"

The group of us stand in the hallway, Illyana and Laikyn holding hands while Tyrone leans against the wall and I stand awkwardly straight, holding my hands behind my back to hide their shaking.

"So, since you are Nate's group of friends, we wanted to let you know what's going on," Dr. Grey says, "Nate isn't a normal kid. Or a normal mutant at that. He was, uh, for lack of a better term, built in a lab."

Tyrone jumps up straight, "Are you kidding me?" He demands.

"I wish," Mr. Summers says., "A while ago there was this man who was bent on world domination. He took our, Dr. Grey and my, DNA and well… Nate was made. We found him and it took a while to get all the programmed stuff processed out but by the time his first birthday, or what we estimated his birthday to be, rolled around."

"So what? He's a robot or something?" Ilyana asks.

"Clone," I correct, despite my disgust. "Robot would suggest that he is a machine, where in reality he is flesh and bone."

"First sheep, now dinosaurs and people," Tyrone shakes his head, "How many movies have to come out for people to realize that cloning is not a good thing?"

"Does Nate know this?" Laikyn asks.

"No," Dr. Grey says, "We thought it best to keep it from him so that he could be a normal kid. Unfortunately, we had overlooked the fact that hardwired control that we thought we destroyed still resides in his mind. It's taken over again and now that he has his powers he is basically unstoppable."

Unstoppable? That is not what I wanted to hear. Well, none of this is necessarily something I want to hear, but the term Unstoppable made it sound like Nathaniel was out to control.

Only one question resides in my mind; What have we gotten ourselves into?

 **To Be Continued...**

 **Author's notes: I have not given up on this story yet! However I am struggling to find inspiration, so if you have any ideas I would love to hear it!" xoxoxo**


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